FileRun is a free, open-source, and self-hosted file-sharing application for Linux. It is a very good alternative to Google Drive and dropbox. It allows you to share and sync files, access via WebDAV and even connect to it with the Nextcloud mobile app. It is written in PHP and uses MariaDB as a database backend. It allows you to access your files anywhere via secure cloud storage, and also offers backup and sharing of your photos, videos, files, and more.
In this article, I will explain how to install FileRun with Apache and Let’s Encrypt SSL on Debian 11.
Prerequisites
- A server running Debian 11.
- A valid domain name pointed with your server IP.
- A root password is configured on the server.
Install LAMP Server
First, you will need to install the Apache, MariaDB, PHP and other packages to your server. You can install all of them by running the following command:
apt-get install apache2 mariadb-server mariadb-client php libapache2-mod-php imagemagick ffmpeg php-imagick php-mysql php-fpm php-common php-gd php-json php-curl php-zip php-xml php-mbstring php-bz2 php-intl unzip -y
Once all the packages are installed, you will also need to install the IonCube loader to your system.
First, download the IonCube loader with the following command:
wget https://downloads.ioncube.com/loader_downloads/ioncube_loaders_lin_x86-64.tar.gz
Once the download is completed, extract the downloaded file with the following command:
tar -xzf ioncube_loaders_lin_x86-64.tar.gz -C /usr/lib/php
Next, create a ioncube configuration file and define the path of the IonCube source:
nano /etc/php/7.4/apache2/conf.d/00-ioncube.ini
Add the following line:
zend_extension = /usr/lib/php/ioncube/ioncube_loader_lin_7.4.so
Save and close the file then create a PHP configuration file for FileRun:
nano /etc/php/7.4/apache2/conf.d/filerun.ini
Add the following settings:
expose_php = Off error_reporting = E_ALL & ~E_NOTICE display_errors = Off display_startup_errors = Off log_errors = On ignore_repeated_errors = Off allow_url_fopen = On allow_url_include = Off variables_order = "GPCS" allow_webdav_methods = On memory_limit = 128M max_execution_time = 300 output_buffering = Off output_handler = "" zlib.output_compression = Off zlib.output_handler = "" safe_mode = Off register_globals = Off magic_quotes_gpc = Off upload_max_filesize = 20M post_max_size = 20M enable_dl = Off disable_functions = "" disable_classes = "" session.save_handler = files session.use_cookies = 1 session.use_only_cookies = 1 session.auto_start = 0 session.cookie_lifetime = 0 session.cookie_httponly = 1 date.timezone = "UTC"
Save and close the file then restart the Apache service to apply the changes:
systemctl reload apache2
Configure MariaDB Database
First, you will need to secure the MariaDB installation using the following command:
mysql_secure_installation
Answer all the questions as shown below:
Enter current password for root (enter for none): PRESS ENTER Set root password? [Y/n] Y New password: Re-enter new password: Remove anonymous users? [Y/n] Y Disallow root login remotely? [Y/n] Y Remove test database and access to it? [Y/n] Y Reload privilege tables now? [Y/n] Y
Next, log in to the MariaDB shell with the following command:
mysql -u root -p
Once you are log in, create a database and user with the following command:
MariaDB [(none)]> CREATE DATABASE filerun;
MariaDB [(none)]> CREATE USER 'filerun'@'localhost' IDENTIFIED BY 'password';
Next, grant all the privileges to the FileRun database with the following command:
MariaDB [(none)]> GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON filerun.* TO 'filerun'@'localhost';
Next, flush the privileges and exit from the MariaDB with the following command:
MariaDB [(none)]> FLUSH PRIVILEGES;
MariaDB [(none)]> EXIT;
Once you are finished, you can proceed to the next step.
Download FileRun
First, download the latest version of FileRun with the following command:
wget -O FileRun.zip https://filerun.com/download-latest
Once the FileRun is downloaded, unzip the downloaded file using the following command:
unzip FileRun.zip -d /var/www/html/filerun/
Next, set proper permission and ownership with the following command:
chown -R www-data:www-data /var/www/html/filerun
chmod -R 755 /var/www/html/filerun
Once you are finished, you can proceed to the next step.
Configure Apache for FileRun
Next, you will need to create an Apache virtual host configuration file for FileRun. You can create it with the following command:
nano /etc/apache2/sites-available/filerun.conf
Add the following lines:
ServerName filerun.example.com
DocumentRoot /var/www/html/filerun
Options Indexes FollowSymLinks
AllowOverride All
Require all granted
ErrorLog ${APACHE_LOG_DIR}/filerun.error.log
CustomLog ${APACHE_LOG_DIR}/filerun.access.log combined
Save and close the file then activate the Apache virtual host and rewrite module with the following command:
a2ensite filerun.conf
a2enmod rewrite
Next, restart the Apache service to apply the changes:
systemctl restart apache2
You can also check the Apache status with the following command:
systemctl status apache2
You should see the following output:
? apache2.service - The Apache HTTP Server
Loaded: loaded (/lib/systemd/system/apache2.service; enabled; vendor preset: enabled)
Active: active (running) since Sat 2022-01-29 15:14:56 UTC; 5s ago
Docs: https://httpd.apache.org/docs/2.4/
Process: 22533 ExecStart=/usr/sbin/apachectl start (code=exited, status=0/SUCCESS)
Main PID: 22538 (apache2)
Tasks: 6 (limit: 2341)
Memory: 16.4M
CPU: 94ms
CGroup: /system.slice/apache2.service
??22538 /usr/sbin/apache2 -k start
??22539 /usr/sbin/apache2 -k start
??22540 /usr/sbin/apache2 -k start
??22541 /usr/sbin/apache2 -k start
??22542 /usr/sbin/apache2 -k start
??22543 /usr/sbin/apache2 -k start
Jan 29 15:14:56 debian11 systemd[1]: Starting The Apache HTTP Server...
Once you are finished, you can proceed to the next step.
Access FileRun Web UI
Now, open your web browser and access the FileRun web UI using the URL http://filerun.example.com. You will be redirected to the following page:
Click on the Next button. you should see the server requirements check page:
Click on the Next button. You should see the database setup page:
Click on the Next button. Once the installation has been finished, you should see the following page:
Click on the Next button. You should see the FileRun login page:
Provide your admin username, password, and click on the Sign in button. You should see the FileRun dashboard on the following page:
Secure FileRun with Let’s Encrypt SSL
It is also recommended to secure your website with Let’s Encrypt SSL. First, you will need to install the Certbot client to install and manage the SSL. By default, the Certbot package is included in the Debian default repository so you can install it with the following command:
apt-get install python3-certbot-apache -y
Once the Certbot is installed, run the following command to secure your website with Let’s Encrypt SSL:
certbot --apache -d filerun.example.com
You will be asked to provide your email and accept the term of service as shown below:
Saving debug log to /var/log/letsencrypt/letsencrypt.log Plugins selected: Authenticator standalone, Installer None Enter email address (used for urgent renewal and security notices) (Enter 'c' to cancel): [email protected] - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Please read the Terms of Service at https://letsencrypt.org/documents/LE-SA-v1.2-November-15-2017.pdf. You must agree in order to register with the ACME server at https://acme-v02.api.letsencrypt.org/directory - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - (A)gree/(C)ancel: A - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Would you be willing to share your email address with the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a founding partner of the Let's Encrypt project and the non-profit organization that develops Certbot? We'd like to send you email about our work encrypting the web, EFF news, campaigns, and ways to support digital freedom. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - (Y)es/(N)o: Y Plugins selected: Authenticator apache, Installer apache Obtaining a new certificate Performing the following challenges: http-01 challenge for filerun.example.com Enabled Apache rewrite module Waiting for verification... Cleaning up challenges Created an SSL vhost at /etc/apache2/sites-available/filerun-le-ssl.conf Enabled Apache socache_shmcb module Enabled Apache ssl module Deploying Certificate to VirtualHost /etc/apache2/sites-available/filerun-le-ssl.conf Enabling available site: /etc/apache2/sites-available/filerun-le-ssl.conf Next, select whether or not to redirect HTTP traffic to HTTPS as shown below:
Please choose whether or not to redirect HTTP traffic to HTTPS, removing HTTP access.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 1: No redirect - Make no further changes to the webserver configuration. 2: Redirect - Make all requests redirect to secure HTTPS access. Choose this for new sites, or if you're confident your site works on HTTPS. You can undo this change by editing your web server's configuration. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Select the appropriate number [1-2] then [enter] (press 'c' to cancel): 2
Type 2 and hit Enter to install the Let’s Encrypt SSL for your website:
Enabled Apache rewrite module Redirecting vhost in /etc/apache2/sites-enabled/filerun.conf to ssl vhost in /etc/apache2/sites-available/filerun-le-ssl.conf - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Congratulations! You have successfully enabled https://filerun.example.com You should test your configuration at: https://www.ssllabs.com/ssltest/analyze.html?d=filerun.example.com - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - IMPORTANT NOTES: - Congratulations! Your certificate and chain have been saved at: /etc/letsencrypt/live/filerun.example.com/fullchain.pem Your key file has been saved at: /etc/letsencrypt/live/filerun.example.com/privkey.pem Your cert will expire on 2022-4-29. To obtain a new or tweaked version of this certificate in the future, simply run certbot again with the "certonly" option. To non-interactively renew *all* of your certificates, run "certbot renew" - If you like Certbot, please consider supporting our work by: Donating to ISRG / Let's Encrypt: https://letsencrypt.org/donate Donating to EFF: https://eff.org/donate-le
Conclusion
Congratulations! you have successfully installed FileRun with Apache and Let’s Encrypt SSL on Debian 11. You can now use FileRun to store your files, music, photos and share them with your friends and family.
